Rechargeable pressure spray device



T. T. GRAHAM RECHARGEABLE PRESSURE SPRAY DEVICE Filed Aug. l0, 1949Nvfl, 1953 ATTORNEYS @Patented Nov. 17, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICERECHARGEABLE PRESSURE SPRAY DEVICE Thomas T. Graham, Houston, Tex.,assignor of one-half to Ocie P. Alexander, Houston, Tex.

Application August 10, 1949, Serial N o. 109,57 7

3 Claims. (Cl. 299-95) This invention relates to new and usefulimprovements in rechargeable pressure spray devices.

One object of the invention is to provide an improved pressure spraydevice which is adapted to receive any suitable liquid to be sprayedsuch as an insecticide, paint, liquid wax, etc., which is so constructedthat the device may be properly pressurized or charged, whereby theliquid within the device may be sprayed or dispensed as desired; thedevice being adapted to be charged at relatively high pressures.

An important object of the invention is to provide an improved spraydevice which is adapted to receive a liquid to be sprayed and which hasmeans for repressuring or recharging the device with the usual pressurecharge cartridge, whereby the device may be continuously refilled andrecharged and need not be discarded as is usual with the pressure bombtype of spray devices now in general use.

A further object is to provide a spray device, of the characterdescribed, wherein the recharging cartridge containing a pressure mediumis mounted in a position in communication with the interior of theliquid container of the device and remains in such position until theliquid has been entirely dispensed or used, whereby all of the pressuremedium in the cartridge is utilized in operating the device.

Still another object is to provide an improved rechargeable spraydevice, of the character described, having an improved fillingarrangement whereby the device may be illed with the liquid to besprayed to a desired level whereby the allowable air space for thereception of the pressure medium gas is controlled thereby to controlthe pressure to which the device is charged and also to control withincertain limits the liquid to pressure medium ratio.

Still another object is to provide an improved spray device wherein theliquid and pressuring medium are brought together in a mixing chamber inadvance of the ejection nozzle; said mixing chamber functioning tothoroughly admix the liquid and pressure medium to assure properatomization of the liquid being sprayed.

A still further object is to provide a spray device, of the characterdescribed, wherein the opening establishing communication between theliquid eduction tube and the pressure medium chamber may be varied insize to provide a control of the liquid to pressure medium ratio of themixture which is to be discharged from the outlet nozzle of the device.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improvedcontrol valve for a spray device which controls the discharge of thepressure liquid from the device, said valve providing for aninstantaneous release when opened and an automatic shut-off when closed;the structure of said valve being such that the valve does not closedirectly against the pressure in the device which assures a moreefficient closing action.

A further object is to provide a spray device which is constructed sothat it may be more economically manufactured and which includes animproved type of puncturing element for opening the repressuringcartridge and for assuring that said cartridge will remain open untilthe contents of the device are dispensed; said puncturing element alsohaving means engageable with the cartridge, whereby said cartridge maybe withdrawn from the device by means of said element.

Other and further objects of this invention will appear from thefollowing description.

In the accompanying drawings which form a part of the instantspecification and which are to be read in conjunction therewith andwherein like reference numerals are used to indicate like parts in thevarious views:

Figure l is a transverse vertical sectional view of a spraying deviceconstructed in accordance withthe invention,

Figure 2 is a horizontal cross-sectional view taken on the line 2-2 ofFigure 1,

Figure 3 is an elevation of the cartridge receiving tube,

Figure 4- is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the control valve,

Figure 5 is an enlarged sectional detail of the closure member for thecartridge receiving tube, and

Figure 6 is an enlarged horizontal cross-sectional view taken on theline 6-6 of Figure 5.

In the drawings, the numeral I0 designates a container or vessel whichforms the main part of the spraying device and which is preferablyconstructed of an upper half lila, and a lower half 10b which areconnected together with a slip joint connection and then suitably weldedalong an annular bead l I. The bottom of the container is formed with anaxial opening l2 which receives the lower end of a tube or sleeve I3 andthe eX- treme lower portion of said tube is preferably reduced toprovide an external shoulder lli on said tube which engages anupstanding annular rim l5 provided within the container. The tube i3 maybe Welded or otherwise secured within the opening I2 and the upper orinner end of the tubing has its peripheral portion indented or curvedinwardly as indicated at I6, with the indented portions I6 beingpreferably located diametrically opposite each other. -As will beexplained, the tube I3 forms a receptacle for a gas cartridge C, and theinner surfaces Isa of the indented portions I6 provide a seating surfacefor said cartridge,

The tube I3 is provided with a port or opening I'I in its wall and theposition of this open.- ing with respect to the bottom of the containerl may be varied. An eduction or discharge tube I8 extends from thebottomI of the container and has connection with a threaded nipple oritting I9 which is secured into an opening 2li formed axially in the topof the container ID. A control valve A having a discharge nozzle B isconnected with the upper end of the nipple I9 and said Valve is disposedexteriorly of the vessel as is clearly .shown in Figure l, es will hehereinafter explained, when the valve A is opened liquid is drawnupwardly through the tube I8 While the ses or other pressure medium inthe upper portion of the container may pass into the tube through enopening 2l located just below the nipple, lil. Actually, when the valveis. opened the pressure medium in the upper portion of. the containerpasses through the opening 2l and functions to siphon or withdraw liquidupwardly through the eduction tube I8. The mixture of the pressuremedium land the liquid is then discharged through the nozzle B in theform of an atomized spray.

1n lling the container I0, said container is inverted from the positionshown in Figure 1 and the liquid to be sprayed,I which may be aninsecticide,y paint, liquid Wax or any other noncoagulating, non-viscousliquid, is introduced through the open end of the tube I3. The liquidwill enter the container until its level reaches the elevation at whichthe port or opening Il is. located and. with the container inverted itwill be evident that air will be trapped between, the plane in which theopening l1 is located and the bottom of the container. Ihis trapped airprevents any further liquid from being introduced into the. interior ofthe container and, assures that a desired space will be allowed withinthe container for. the reception of a pressuring medium.

After the liquid is introduced into the container I!! a gas cartridge C,such as may be purchased on the open market, is inserted into the tubeand the rounded inner end of the cartridge will. cheese. the seat Ilia.The cartridge C may contain any suitable gas. under pressure, such asCO2 or Freon, and the length of the tube is as to locate the reduced end22 of the cartridge within the tube. As is well known, the reduced end22- o the cartridge Cv is normally closed; by a lead or other soft metalclosure.

Following insertion of the cartridge C a plug element or closure 23 isadapted. to be threaded within the, end of the tube, I3 and this.closure has a cylindrical sump or recess 2 4 formed in its inner end forreceiving the reduced end of the cartridge C. An O-.ring or otherelastic sealing member which is mounted within a peripheral groove. ohthe plus: element is adapted to form. e pressure-tight Seill between theelement 23 and the-wall of the tube or sleeve I3. InV the base. of therecess 24 oi the plug elementv an axial pin 26 isprovided, and. when.the plus element is. thfeaded into the tube as illustrated in Figure l,the pin member 31..

25 is arranged to puncture the lead closure 22 of the cartridge C. Thepin 26 is of a particular construction being formed with a pointed end26a and having an overhanging prong 2Gb at one side thereof. The pinalso has a vertical channel or groove 25e (Figure 6) formed therein.When the pin punctures the material at the end of the cartridge C saidpin enters the interior of the cartridge and the prong 26h overhangs thematerial which has been displaced by the entry of the pin as indicatedin dotted lines in Figure 2. Because the pin is substantiallycylindrical in cross-section and because the material which closes thecartridge is relatively soft, there might be a possibility of saidmaterial closing around the pin, and the groove or recess 26e in saidpin prevents` any possibility of an unintentional closure of thecartridge. Thus, once the cartridge is punctured said cartridge is openand the pressure medium therein may escape through the tube and theninto the interior` of the main container I0.

The. parts are so proportioned that when the plug element 2 3 isthreaded into the tube or sleeve I3 as shown in Figure 1, the pin 28 hasopened the cartridge C. and has released the pressure medium into thecontainer I0. The plug element 23 is formed with an enlarged circulardisc or flange 2 which has its peripheral edge uniformly scalloped toprovide a firm hand gripping surf-ace whereby threading of the plugelement into the tube or sleeve is facilitated. The enlarged ange ordisc 21 is of sufficient area so that it may function as a support orbase member for the entire device after the same has been rie-pressuredand. is ready for use- After the device has been properly lled andpressured by means or the cartridge C the liquid may be dispensed orsprayed as desired by manipulation of the control valve A. The detailsof the valve. A are clearly shown ih Figure 4 and include a cylinder orhousing 28 having one end threaded at '29, to receive the dischargenozzle B. The. nozzle. is generally conical in shape and has arestricted discharge opening or orifice 3B and inwardly oi the orificeis a recess 3l which is adapted to receive a valve seat member 3 2. Thevalve, seat member is preferably constructed of an elastic material suchas neoprene and has an annular seating surface 33 at its inner end withaxial passage 34 communicating with the oriiice in, the. dischargenozzle. A ball valve 35 iS. adapted. to engage the seat 33 and iscarried by the.' inner ena or a plunger as. The bere :sa of the housingis slightly larger than the plunger and a seal between said plunger and`said bore is formed by an O-ring or other elastic sealing operating stem38 of reduced diameter extends from the plunger and has its outerendproiecting from the end of the housing or cylinder, said outer endhaving connection with the upper end 3 5, of' an operating handle die. Acoil spring d I which surrounds the stem 38- is eennned between. theplunger and' the lupper en cl 39 oi the handle and constantly exerts itspressure to hold. the. valve 3G in a seated positions` With the, valve.3,5 engaging its seat, the annular packing 31. around the plunger isdisposed beyond a. passage 42v which extends through the connectinglnipple I .S and one end of this passage communicates. with the bore 28aof the cylinder 2.8. The other end.. of the passage is. in communicationwith a mixing chamber 4.3] which is formed within the connecting nipple'I'Sr and said chamber has its opposite end communicating with theeduction or discharge tube I8. The opening 2| in the upper portion ofthe tube I8 communicates with the mixing chamber :i3 and thus when thevalve is opened the pressure medium from within the upper end of thecontainer I0 flows through the opening 2| into the mixing chamber andthen into the bore of the cylinder through the reduced passage 42. Thispressure medium creates a suction effect and also due to its pressureupon the liquid level forces liquid upwardly through the tube I8; it isapparent that the pressure medium and the liquid are admixed within themixing chamber 43 and then ow outwardly around the plunger 3B past theunseated valve 35 and through the orifice 30 in the nozzle B. The mixingchamber assures proper atomizaticn of the liquid so that efficientspraying from the nozzle is assured. Opening of the valve is eiected bydepressing the handle to the dotted line position shown in Figure 4 withthe handle fulcruming at the point F. When the handle is released thespring 4I immediately returns the valve to a seated position and becausethe plunger 36 and valve 35 are moving in the direction of ow, theflowing liquid under pressure will actually assist in moving the valve35 to a seated position. In other words, the valve plunger 36 and valve35 are not moved directly against the pressure liquid but are rathermoved along the line of iiow of the discharging liquid with the resultthat a quick closing action on the valve is had.

As has been noted the coil spring 4I acts against the valve plunger 36to hold the valve 35 in a seated position and the O-ring 37 confines thepressure in the area between the O-ring and the ball 35 so that thispressure is acting against that end of the piston in which the ball ismounted. It is evident that by controlling the size and strength of thespring 4I, the valve plunger 36 is maintained seated against a desiredpressure; however, if the pressure in the area around the ball 35 andacting against the end of the plunger exceeds the pressure of the springfil the plunger will be moved to an open position automatically so thatpressure may escape from the vessel. In this manner, the valve and theparticular arrangement of pressure acting thereon, together with thespring 4I, provides an automatic relief valve which will preventexcessive pressure building up within the container. This structureeliminates the necessity of requiring a separate relief valve since therelief feature for relieving excessive pressure is incorporated in thesingle control valve.

It is pointed out that the opening 2i in the upper portion of the tubeI8 may be varied in size to vary within certain limits the ratio ofpressure medium to liquid; obviously, if this opening is larger, alarger volume of pressure medium will be permitted to flow into themixing chamber to admix with the liquid, whereas if the opening issmaller a lesser volume of pressure medium is introduced into thechamber.

It is apparent that the valve A may be manipulated as desired to sprayor dispense the liquid within the container I0 in a desired manner. Thepressure medium cartridge C remains in position within the device andthe pin 26 maintains the end 22 of said cartridge open at all times.Thus, all of the pressure within the cartridge C Will ultimately bedischarged into the container and will subsequently be ejected alongwith the liquid through the discharge nozzle B.

6.. It might be lnoted that unless the cartridge C remains incommunication with the liquid chamber of the device at all times theentire gas supply within the cartridge C would not be utilized.

From the foregoing it will be seen that a simple and efficient sprayingdevice is provided. The opening I'I in the tube not only controls theamount of liquid which may be introduced but also by its position willcontrol the final pressure medium to liquid ratio. After the liquid isintroduced the cartridge C is inserted Within the tube I3 and the plugelement 23 threaded into the tube whereby its pin may puncture thecartridge C and permit escape of the pressure medium into the container.The parts remain in this position until the container has been emptiedthrough the discharge of fluid through the spray nozzle. Due to theoverhanging prong 26h of the puncturing pin 26 removal of the plugelement from the tube will result in a withdrawal of the cartridge C.The cartridge may then be disconnected from the pin and discarded, afterwhich the container may be relled with the desired liquid and properlyrepressured by insertion of a new cartridge in position within the tube.

The control valve A is of exceptionally simple construction and isarranged to provide for quick opening and quick closing. Before beingdischarged the liquid under pressure is passed through the mixingchamber 43 where it is thoroughly admixed with the pressure medium whichassures efficient atomization of the liquid being discharged from thenozzle B.

It is pointed out that by locating the charging cartridge within areceptacle which is in constant communication with the interior of thecontainer wherein the liquid is disposed, it is possible to utilize allof the pressure from the cartridge. Thus, the container may be chargedunder a relatively high pressure because with the cartridge being heldopen the actual pressure charge within the container is the pressure ofthe medium within the cartridge. The increased pressure is desirablebecause obviously, when the control valve A is opened the higherpressure will result in a greater spray of the liquid and will alsoproject the spray a greater distance from the nozzle.

From the foregoing it will be seen that this invention is one welladapted to attain all of the ends and objects hereinabove set forthtogether with other advantages which are obvious and which are inherentto the structure.

It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are ofutility and may be employed without reference to other features andsubcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of theclaims.

As many possible embodiments may be made of the invention withoutdeparting from the scope thereof it is to be understood that all matterherein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to beinterpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having described the invention, I claim:

1. In a rechargeable spray device having a liquid container with anoutlet in its upper end and a control valve communicating with theoutlet for controlling the discharge of liquid from the containerthrough said outlet, a sleeve mounted wholly Within the interior of thecontainer having its inner end communicating with the interior of thecontainer and its outer end secured to the inner Wall of the container,the bore of the sleeve being open to atmosphere through an opening inthe bottom of the con- 7 tainexi, whereby said container may beinliiteil and the liquid introduced through said $1,253,119, said sleevehaving a lateral port in its Weill termediate its ends at apredetermined pQll tor controlling the level to whigh the Q ,Qntflel maybe filled, a recharging pressure mdiurn cart: ridge insertable entirelywithin the sleeve, n C 0.- sure for the open end of the sleeve 01?CQIlflllllS the cartridge therein, thread means c Qllrllillg saidclosure to said sleeve to permit Said, QlQllr@ to move inwardly towardSaid .Qarr`l d, @im fil. puncturing element carried by the cloliieadapt: ed to engage and puncture the end of. the ser: tridge when theYclosure -S @hladd inwardly within the sleeve, said thread means n dineSaid puncturing element within said .cartridge @filer punciurinethereof. and said puneiuiring degli@ having a vertical channel,estaplifshI ization from the interior of said ca yexterior thereofwhereby Lhfl@ 1S @38911.69 .a Per llease of the pressure medium @9m lll@Qll'trife into the interior O f .the flnzdllelf 2. A sprayer devieeincluding, .a solidali@ f Or receiving a liquid ,to lee sprayed and l1..lig ,im Outlet Opening ai one end illeledilf ,d rif-@Maele having,Qommunicetiqri Vwith ille misil??? 9? the liquid container and spaedfrom the outlet opening thereof, a drldg@ hdl/.1115.21 PleSSlllZilg @ef,dium therein inseritaple within the reeptacld a closure for Aclosingine .end of. the leegi'ele and lfor .confining the cartridge therein,means n the closure ,for opening aid Acartridge id release ,thepressurizing medium into theinterior o f thecon- Gainer .to Preseglie?fill? same., .e liddid .edddiidn tribe extending imm ,the :leider perdn0f the 991,1- tain container, a QIiilQl .valve hevige ddrilinuriicdildlwith the outer end of said tuhe for controlling the discharge Qf theliquid therefrom, and a comimunieaiion pori 111111,@ l.upper ,periidnfdfthe lube below the ,Outlet and above ,the-liquid level ln ille i9 the.Outlet erwin; ville Aend 0f the i9?? eergliiiidg ille pressure mediumin the neer edition di illedileliier ig eiiiei" the; @be and @dirigwith" the lidilidillerei, Said ,copi i291 valve including a houding.hiilns d ,discharge opening eslldbl Hengel ieeidhiouslrle, an annularshoulder o n said plunger sealing with. seid lidilsineend Serine irlSeid hdus'ifie lem-Oie from said discharge opening and engaging saidshoulder to urge said plunger to elose said diselie'ree evening;

'-Ihe sprayer deye set forth in laim 2, toseiner "with e' disearse IieZZle eomieeied i0 the valve f0.1 disehaigingeiomized liquid therefromwhen sadvalve is Opened, ySeid ndzzle'having e resilient Valve seattherein, and a ball valve on ,Said'iilimger remdie from seid vShoulderand er1- gagfeahle with said seat to close said nozzle, s aicl outer endof said tube being disposed between said Iball valve and said shoulderwhereby said ,pntaner can vbe pressurized by injecting a pressure mediuminto 4the nozzle to force said valve Open.

THOMAS T. GRAHAM.

Befereneee Cited .in the file 0f this patent UNITED STATES PATENTSNumber New@ Dale 545,351 Durafort Aug. 27, 1895 v6'74,fi9 2 Brnie et al.May 21, 1901 956,704- Hepler May 3, 1910 I11455'19@ neas Jury e, 19151,657,782 Berg JanfSl, 1928 ,1,657,783 Berg Jan, 31, 1928 1,979,390`Jacobs Nov. G, 1934 1,992,490 Lewis Feb. 26, 1935 dioses? ,Logon Jan.1s, 193e J2,137,786 Schlosser Nov. 22, 19,38 2,195,554 ,Beardsley Apr.2, 1940 2,378,451 Vensei June 18, 1945 2,441,011 lp'odeln May 4, 1948

